AZRI (February 16, 2017)……. ….A Three days Farmer Training Workshop on “Profitable Cultivation of Mungbean (Through Value Addition & Chain Approach)organized by Arid Zone Research Institute, Bahawalpur in collaboration with Al-Sadiq Desert Welfare Organization, Bahawalpur on 14-16 February, 2017. The program started with recitation of few verses from the Holy Quran. Director AZRI, Bahawalpur highlighted the importance and objectives of the training “Profitable Cultivation of Mungbean (Through Value Addition & Chain Approach)”. He also focused that this crop can be grown under limited water regimes on sandy soil of Cholistan desert. He highlighted that during last decade, the institute has been engaged in research activities regarding crop improvement of mungbean crop in the area of Southern Punjab by conducting need based research on different aspects of mungbean. The farmers of the area has also been facilitated with technical guidance by AZRI scientists for introducing mungbean crop in existing wheat-cotton cropping pattern and the farmers are getting encouraging economic return and are being convinced to cultivate the mungbean in the Bahawalpur Division, particularly the Cholistan Desert. The institute has screened three high yielding genotypes of mungbean out of hundreds of accessions. These genotypes represented in Mungbean National Uniform Yield Trials.

SSO AZRI, Bahawalpur, delivered the lecture on Profitable Cultivation of Mungbean in Southern Punjab and guided the farmers about its modern production technology (Suitable varieties for the area, weed management, crop nutrition management, irrigation requirement at critical stages by using water saving techniques, different diseases of mungbean and their control measures, insect pest management and proper process of harvesting and threshing).

On the concluding Session the Director AZRI ensured that this institute will provide further technical guidelines to the farmers of area particularly Cholistan.